On-The-Go Breakfast Muffins

December 17, 2014

A couple months back I made some egg nests which were really popular. People seemed to like having muffin sized breakfast bites or the idea of breakfast on the go. But for those watching their calories, hash browns aren’t too forgiving and some folks just don’t like runny eggs. So today I’ll be making a scrambled egg variation of this sans hash browns and with a little spinach and smoked paprika.

Think of these muffins as a healthy variation of my nests.

I only had large eggs, which is typically how I buy my eggs so the measurements I’ve jotted down are for those. If you’re using regular size eggs, add an egg or two. I loved using fresh spinach leaves but make sure to chop them up so they distribute evenly.

It’s all pretty simple. Think of a reinvented way of enjoying an omelet. All the stuff you like in your omelet in a muffin form instead. My fillings are a general guideline so feel free to add whatever you like. Bell peppers, onions, ham, mushrooms…whatever you’re stomach desires.

And there’s cheese! If you want more cheese, top the eggs with some shredded Parmesan for a crunchy cheesy top. There was much confusion with the egg nests about what kind of muffin pan I used. I actually didn’t know mini and jumbo muffin pans existed until people asked! So for the record, I only have regular muffin pans. You could make them jumbo but you’ll have to adjust the measurements of the eggs, bacon, spinach and cheese accordingly. Shouldn’t be too hard though. This recipe is very forgiving!

Bake it for 20-23 minutes depending on your oven or until a knife comes out clean in the middle. And don’t forget to grease those muffin pans! You’ll find a little surpise waiting for you when you take it out of the oven. They will puff up and rise, almost majestically. And then they will shrink back to a normal size once they cool down. Sadness! I was pretty excited at the puffed up version.

They should come out of the muffin pans super easy. Serve it as is or with your favorite toppings: cream cheese, sour cream, hot sauce is a couple of things I can think off the top of my head. That’s about it!

I’ve reheated them the next day in the microwave and they’re fine, just a little rubbery. The more the eggs cook past the done stage, the more rubbery they get so I guess adding in the extra reheating time will do that. I reheated mine for about a minute and a half. Hope this helps, Laura!

I have warmed similar egg based muffins before but I put them in a toaster oven at 300 degrees on a small baking pan with a piece of aluminum foil laid over them loosly for 15 minutes. They come out oven fresh. I put them in while I am getting ready of the morning. Enjoy!

Yes, you should absolutely cook the bacon first! Sorry for the misunderstanding. When I list bacon bits in my recipe I mean cooked bacon diced up into little bacon bits. You can either cook and dice them yourself or buy pre-made bacon bits from the store. Thanks for trying this recipe out, Mary Ann!

They kept for a couple of days for us, about 2-3 days is the max I would go before I get uncomfortable with it sitting in the fridge for too long. I never froze them so I can’t honestly say much about it. As for freezing them safely, here’s a guide from FoodSafety.gov about freezing eggs in all forms. I would say to go with ‘Quiche with filling’ for this chart. Hope this helps answer your question!

Just made these for the first time, and they turned out great! I was a bit nervous, since I’m definitely not the chef of the household, but I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out delicious. Very easy and cooking-newbie-proof.

I want to make these for a crowd. But I’m trying to decide if I want to do this recipe or the hashbrown breakfast nest, I’m not a runny egg person so I like the idea of this one. Do you think I can add the hashbrowns?

Sorry for the delay, Janay! I’m still on vacation but I’m trying to reply as I go. I suggest following the instructions and timing for the hash brown crust in that recipe – blind baking them first to get them nice and primed, then switch to this recipe for the filling with the scrambled mixture. Use the time in this recipe to have your eggs set nicely in the hash brown crust. If the hash brown crust starts to brown too much since it’s a longer baking time, you can cover the crust with foil to protect them but I don’t think this will happen. Good luck!

Hi Farah, I was wondering if you have any quick, high calorie (that’s not a typo, “high” as in lots of calories, 200+) breakfast on the go, lunch, and snack revipes. I am first year law school student and spend lots of time with me, myself, and I outside of class time. Unfortunately, I’ve picked up the bad practice of skipping meals. I try to make meals on the weekends and need something calorie-packed, portable, for my teen daughter and I to eat for breakfast, lunch, and snacks. P.S. we eat just about anything .
Your recommendations are appreciated.

Heya Lisa! I just sent you an email with my recommendations. Hope some of them will work for you and your daughter. Good luck with your studies. I did law for two years way back when. It can be stressful!

I’ve made various versions of this recipe and they’re always great. I use leftover ham, potatoes, beef or veggies sometimes. Basically anything you’d put into an omelette works. In addition, you can use a quarter of a flour tortilla as a liner, put you veggies and meat in the bottom, then pour in your egg mixture, and top with extra cheese and sprinkle with paprika.

Well I made them, looked good tasted good, lost all my bottoms. I sprayed the muffin pan with Pam cooking spray, and everyone was cooked good, but the bottom would not come off the pan. Oh well live to try another day.

5 stars for the recipe, but 3 because it would not come out, that is not on her, grease it really, really good.

Oh, I’m sorry you lost your bottoms! Did you give it enough time to cool down first before prying them out? That usually helps. They need some breathing time to solidify after baking in the oven is the way I like to think of it as. Also having a non-stick muffin pan helps.